title: Macrophage infiltration and stress-signaling in omental and subcutaneous adipose tissue in diabetic pregnancies.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To examine if, as in obesity, pregnancies complicated by gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) exhibit increased macrophage infiltration and activated MAP-kinases in omental adipose tissue.
  
  
  METHODS
  Paired omental (OM) and abdominal subcutaneous (SC) fat samples were collected from 11 GDM and 20 normal pregnancies during cesarean delivery. Tissues were stained to detect macrophages, and analyzed to assess MAP-kinases.
  
  
  RESULTS
  OM had higher macrophage counts than SC in GDM (6.10 ± 2.20 versus 2.53 ± 1.45, p = 0.04), but not in normal pregnancies (p = 0.346). GDM pregnancies had more macrophages than normal pregnancies in OM (6.10 ± 2.20 versus 1.29 ± 0.55, p = 0.01), while only a trend was observed in SC fat (p = 0.08). Significant correlation (R = 0.619, p = 0.005) was observed between OM-macrophage infiltration and insulin resistance. Using multivariate analysis, only obesity independently associated with GDM. Expression of total p38MAP-kinase was higher in OM versus SC in both normal and GDM pregnancies, without significant differences between these groups. However, expression of activated p-p38MAP-kinase, and its upstream kinase MKK4, was comparable between fat depots.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  GDM pregnancies demonstrate increased macrophage infiltration to OM fat, correlating with higher insulin resistance. As in non-pregnant-patients obesity and OM macrophage infiltration may be on the same causal pathway, leading to GDM. Yet, this occurs without activation of p38MAP-kinase signaling.
authors.affiliation: Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology .
authors.forename: Avi
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Harlev
authors.forename: Barak
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Aricha-Tamir
authors.forename: Ruthy
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Shaco-Levy
authors.forename: Tania
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Tarnovscki
authors.forename: Nava
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Bashan
authors.forename: Assaf
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Rudich
authors.forename: Eyal
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Sheiner
authors.forename: Fernanda
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Press
authors.forename: Arnon
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Wiznitzer
mesh_terms: D050153:Abdominal Fat / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism; D000328:Adult; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D002465:Cell Movement / Q000276:immunology; D016640:Diabetes, Gestational / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D048670:MAP Kinase Kinase 4 / Q000378:metabolism; D008264:Macrophages / Q000502:physiology*; D009852:Omentum; D011247:Pregnancy; D015398:Signal Transduction; D013312:Stress, Physiological; D050151:Subcutaneous Fat / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism; D048051:p38 Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinases / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D048051:p38 Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinases; D048670:MAP Kinase Kinase 4; C482559:MAP2K4 protein, human
keywords: Adipose tissue; GDM; macrophage infiltration